Saturday, March 29, 2014

WHY WE’LL NEVER AGAIN SHOP AT TARGET

We’ll never again shop at Target. They lost our business
for good. And all over a measly $25.

I suppose our spending is chump change to the retail
behemoth, compared to the estimated $400 million it lost from its recent REDcard
hacking. Still, wouldn’t you expect this besieged retailer would have
superior customer service after that debacle? After all, Target calls shoppers
its “valued guests.”

·March 3 (Monday) – Paid Target credit
card bill in full ($27.34) via bank transfer (again, due date of March 2 was on
a Sunday).

·March 11 – April bill arrived, which my
wife, Eva, noted included a $25 past-due penalty (plus interest). Checking further, she found that the
March 3 payment I made had been solely for a $25 past-due penalty (plus
interest).

The upshot: Target expected us to pay a $25 late
penalty (plus interest) on a $25 late penalty (plus interest), all for being less
than 24 hours late on that first payment, which was impossible to pay on a Sunday
due date via our regular method of bill payments through the bank (which, of
course, is closed on Sundays).

One might think that a call to Target’s customer
service would straighten all this out. After all, we had perfect credit (until
now), paying balances in full and on time every month. If one thought that, however,
one would be wrong.

Target’s customer service rep agreed to waive just one
of the late fees. Talking to her supervisor changed nothing. “I can understand
your frustration,” she purred.

“No, I don’t think you do,” Eva retorted.

At the close of this heated conversation, Eva explained
that the dispute over $25 would cost them a loyal customer.

Ever-so-helpful to its valued guest, the Target
supervisor offered, “If you like, I can assist you with cancelling your card.”

I’m sure that somewhere in the fine print of
Target’s credit card agreement it explains that Sunday due dates can’t be paid
on Monday. I’m sure that I would happily have paid any future Target credit
card bills due on a Sunday on the preceding Friday, given a rational response
from Target’s customer service people. You know, lesson learned and all that.

Twenty years ago we had a similar experience with
Sears over a defective Kenmore washing machine, which the Sears people refused
to fix. Until then, Sears had been our go-to store for appliances, Craftsman
tools, kitchen supplies, and other miscellany. I can’t estimate how many dollars
we had spent at Sears over the years. But I can tell you exactly how
many we’ve spent at Sears in the last two decades – zero.

At Target, we used to buy groceries, furniture, pet
food, office supplies, music, electronics, and so on – I’d guess thousands of
dollars in purchases every year. Going forward, though, I can tell you precisely
our Target budget for as long as we live – zero.